St Jude Medical Inc. Stock Downgraded (STJ)

Editor's Note: TheStreet ratings do not represent the views of TheStreet's staff or its contributors. Ratings are established by computer based on metrics for performance (which includes growth, stock performance, efficiency and valuation) and risk (volatility and solvency). Companies with poor cash flow or high debt levels tend to earn lower ratings in our model.

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- St Jude Medical (NYSE:STJ) has been downgraded by TheStreet Ratings from buy to hold. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its reasonable valuation levels, largely solid financial position with reasonable debt levels by most measures and expanding profit margins. However, as a counter to these strengths, we also find weaknesses including deteriorating net income, weak operating cash flow and disappointing return on equity.

• EXCLUSIVE OFFER: Jim Cramer's Protégé, Dave Peltier, only buys Stocks Under $10 that he thinks could potentially double. See what he's trading today with a 14-day FREE pass.

Highlights from the ratings report include:

• Despite currently having a low debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, it is higher than that of the industry average, inferring that management of debt levels may need to be evaluated further. Despite the fact that STJ's debt-to-equity ratio is mixed in its results, the company's quick ratio of 1.58 is high and demonstrates strong liquidity.
• The gross profit margin for ST JUDE MEDICAL INC is currently very high, coming in at 79.10%. Regardless of STJ's high profit margin, it has managed to decrease from the same period last year. Despite the mixed results of the gross profit margin, the net profit margin of 13.27% trails the industry average.
• Net operating cash flow has declined marginally to $350.00 million or 2.05% when compared to the same quarter last year. In conjunction, when comparing current results to the industry average, ST JUDE MEDICAL INC has marginally lower results.
• The company, on the basis of change in net income from the same quarter one year ago, has underperformed when compared to that of the S&P 500 and greatly underperformed compared to the Health Care Equipment & Supplies industry average. The net income has decreased by 22.3% when compared to the same quarter one year ago, dropping from $226.47 million to $176.00 million.

.

St. Jude Medical, Inc. develops, manufactures, and distributes cardiovascular and implantable neurostimulation medical devices worldwide. It operates in four segments: Cardiac Rhythm Management, Cardiovascular, Atrial Fibrillation, and Neuromodulation. The company has a P/E ratio of 14.1, below the S&P 500 P/E ratio of 17.7. St Jude Medical has a market cap of $10.36 billion and is part of the health care sector and health services industry. Shares are down 2% year to date as of the close of trading on Wednesday.

You can view the full St Jude Medical Ratings Report or get investment ideas from our investment research center.

-- Written by a member of TheStreet Ratings Staff

Holiday Special: Subscribe to Action Alerts PLUS to see how Jim Cramer trades his $2.5 Million+ portfolio for 51% off the list price. Your first 14-days are FREE: Sign up today to get e-mail alerts before every trade.

For more information on St Jude Medical Inc. click any of the following:

• St Jude Medical Inc. Stock Price

• St Jude Medical Inc. Analyst Ratings

• St Jude Medical Inc. Key Stats & Profile

• St Jude Medical Inc. Earnings

• St Jude Medical Inc. Ratio Comparison

• St Jude Medical Inc. Growth Rates

• St Jude Medical Inc. Balance Sheet

• St Jude Medical Inc. Cash Flow

• St Jude Medical Inc. Income Statement